According to data from Statistics Estonia, nearly 580,000 laying hens were kept in Estonia last year, collectively producing more than 188 million eggs. This marks an increase of over 5 percent compared to the previous year. A large share of these eggs comes from Valga and Põlva counties, where the country's largest egg producers — after Dava Foods, which operates in Harju County — are concentrated.

At Linnu Talu, a farm located in Tagula, Valga County, a partial transition to cage-free and free-range henhouses began in 2023. As a result, one-third of the farm's hens are now kept in perch and free-range systems, while the remaining two-thirds remain in cages.

However, according to Linnu Talu manager Astre Jaagant, caged hens are actually happier. "They have everything right at their disposal. Just like people prefer things to be automated — press a button and everything works. You saw it yourself: they have feed here, drinking water here; they walk back and forth, everything runs on schedule — they rest, they sleep, they have a nesting box. But in a perch system, they have to climb up to lay eggs, come down to eat and some of the weaker ones struggle with that and fall behind," she explained.

So, what distinguishes a free-range hen from a perch hen? "It's the same system, except the free-range hens can also go outside," Jaagant said.

Currently, about 80 percent of Estonia's egg-laying hens are housed in cages. In Põlva County, the egg production company Eesti Muna had planned to build a perch-hen facility in Väimela years ago, but local opposition halted the project. As a result, all of Eesti Muna's 130,000 hens remain in cages — a decision based on productivity considerations.

"Estonia's egg supply reliability currently stands at about 50 percent of the national demand. If someone decides today that they won't invest in new facilities by 2035, Estonia could face an even greater egg shortage," said Eesti Muna CEO Jüri Anepaio.

But can consumers actually taste a difference between different types of eggs? "I don't think so, because the feed is the same. The taste of any animal product is determined by the feed, not by how much the animal moves. The egg isn't tastier or of higher quality just because the hen walks around more — it's all about the feed," Jaagant explained.

The proposed changes would increase hens' freedom of movement, but cages would still remain. The taste of the eggs wouldn't change, but they would become more expensive.

"The investment per hen varies, ranging from approximately €30 to €50. For the end consumer, this means that some domestic Estonian eggs will still be available. However, if Estonia outright bans caged hens while Latvia, Lithuania and Poland do not, the result is clear — cheaper eggs will simply be imported from those countries," Anepaio said.

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